Balanced Moments

Living of a life of balance is one of the keys to happiness and success. Every week, Michal will share an affirmation that will add Balanced Moments to your life. The goal is to achieve so many Balanced Moments that you end up with a balanced life. Just take things one moment at a time - and don't forget to breath!

7 Tips for Work-Life Balance

by
Michal Spiegelman
February 14 2012

For me, exercising is important in order to keep work-life balance.

Of course, there are other important factors as well: setting boundaries with how late I work, allowing myself to take breaks, to rest, to do something fun, to socialize and to feel that there is more to life than work.

Here are my Top 7 Work-Life Balance Tips:

1. Create blocks of time for work, family and self. If both you and your partner are working, have a conversation and coordinate “together time”, “alone time” and “work time.” Sometimes it is just a matter of having a conversation and making plans, but most people have more success by writing it in their calendars.

2. Protect your “non-work” time. During your family or alone time, don’t work! It is better to spend only an hour with your kids, but to be fully present to them, no phone, no emails, than to spend several distracted hours with them. Same goes for your alone time. Taking a walk by yourself or with a pet? How about enjoying the moment and leaving the phone at home?

3. Do one thing at a time. The result of doing a million things at the same time is stress, low productivity, over-exhaustion and burnout. If there are more than 3 documents open on your computer screen, that’s a red flag. Work on one task at a time and when you’re done move to the next one. If you are a full time mom and you also have your own business, wear your “mom’s hat” for a block of time, and concentrate fully on your responsibility as a mother. This way, you won’t feel guilty when you switch to your “career hat” and devote yourself to that. Trying to do both at once creates unnecessary tension.

4. Identify and cut your time wasters. Once you’re clear with your priorities and your blocks of time, you have to make sure you don’t fill it up with activities that are time consuming and unproductive. I’m not talking about fun activities, because those are important, but I am talking about activities you get addicted to and spend too much time on without much reward Examples are: computer games, Facebook, watching TV for a long time, etc.

5. Make dates with your kids. If you have children, plan individual time to spend with each one of them, undistracted. Whether it’s a walk in nature, picnic in the park or baking together, this quality time will means so much for them and for you.

6. Make dates with your partner. If you are married or in a relationship, the best way to make your relationship a priority when you are busy with work is to plan at least one evening a week where you’re both devoted to being with one another. Don’t expect your partner to initiate it. Do it yourself. Show them that they are important to you and your time together is valuable, no matter how busy you are.

7. Make dates with yourself. When we talk about work-life balance, alone time is the first thing most people give up. The irony is that when you spend time with yourself it energizes you, makes you centered and creates a sense of inner peace. You really need it in order to live a balanced. It doesn’t happen by itself. Plan ahead and schedule time in your calendar.

Michal Spiegelman of Balanced Moments successfully helps people worldwide create balance and fulfillment in their lives. As a Life Coach, Michal helps people stretch, get out of their comfort zones, grow and achieve. She holds a degree in social work and has 15 years of experience as an Energy Healer. Michal is a trained facilitator and mentor of the Hoffman Institute, a world-renowned leader in personal development. She is a Certified Professional Life Coach (CPC) trained by the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC).